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A comment on Intel wants to charge $50 to unlock stuff your CPU can already do (2010). Parent comment

Re:Intel wants to charge $50 to unlock stuff your CPU can al... by davvolun on Tuesday June 04, 2013 @11:54AM (#5820184)
That actually makes sense, I think. Imagine how simpler and more cost effective it would be to make a single processor tiered at 4 levels via this method versus having the entire fabrication chain for four processors. If the prices are right, then I could buy the lowest tier, and a few years later pay the upgrade and get nearly a whole new processor. As long as the pricing is fair, and some cost savings are passed on to the consumer, this could be win-win, right?
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Re:Intel wants to charge $50 to unlock stuff your CPU can al... by aangjie on Tuesday June 04, 2013 @11:58AM (#5820219)
While i agree in part with the idea of spreading R&D cost via locked functionality, i am not sure it's a good idea to legalize it without any regulatory body. And forming these bodies is no trivial matter, So overall am against this idea, simply because i don't want to trust Intel/<other Big Corp(that's close to monopoly)> to pass on meaningful cost savings to the consumer.
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Re:Intel wants to charge $50 to unlock stuff your CPU can al... by Guvante on Tuesday June 04, 2013 @12:15PM (#5820340)
Your comment doesn't make sense, the locking functionality is perfectly legal and is actually a net-gain for the consumer (they now have the option to upgrade when otherwise they would have received a hardware locked chip).
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